Addressing the legislative session of the Constituent Assembly today, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said the government is commitment to implement various agreements reached in the past.

Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal arrives at International Convention Centre to address the legislative session of the Constituent Assembly on Tuesday, Nov 11 2008. nepalnews.com/NPA

Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal arrives at International Convention Centre…
Responding to the 9-point memorandum submitted by the main opposition party Nepali Congress to him, the Prime Minister said that most of the issues raised by the Congress party were related to the implementation of latest agreement signed by the parties few months earlier, which included return of properties seized during the Maoist insurgency, scrapping of the paramilitary structure of the Young Communist League (YCL) as well as the dual security arrangement for Maoist leaders.

Although he admitted lapses in the implementation of the agreements, Dahal claimed some progress has been made in the implementation of some of these commitments and that the government would make further efforts to fulfill them. He also told the House that procedures for return of the sized properties would be done under the monitoring of a parliamentary body to ensure that works are done effectively.

The NC on Sunday had submitted the memorandum to the Prime Minister, demanding the government implement the past agreements including immediate return of properties seized by the Maoists. The party had demanded that the Prime Minister respond to the demands in the parliament.

Similarly, the Prime Minister said the budget session should be wrapped up as soon as possible to start constitution-making process, stressing that new constitution must be written in time.

Responding to objection raised by lawmakers to the Defence Minister’s clarification that he never met the suspected PLA commander who has been accused of murdering businessman Ramhari Shrestha, Prime Minister Dahal said the government was serious about initiating action against the culprits.

“We’ve taken Ramhari murder case very seriously and we believe that the culprits must be punished,” he said. “Culture of impunity does exist in the country, but the government is committed to end it.” nepalnews.com mk Nov 11 08